In an online poll, the male respondents that would like to work in an all male environment were asked to explain their reasons for feeling this way, to which almost two thirds, 64%, said it was because of 'bitchy environment' created by 'some female colleagues'.
Of the 8% of male respondents who claimed to want to be the only male employee amongst female colleagues, the majority, 68%, said this was for the 'romantic opportunities' that could arise in that working environment and 11% said they felt there would be 'less competition' against female colleagues.
Similarly, the female respondents were asked what gender they would mostly prefer to work with, to which more than half, 59%, admitted that they would like to work in an environment with 'mostly men'.
Furthermore, 4% of the female respondents stated their ideal working environment would consist of 'only men' with them being the 'only female' employee. In contrast, more than a quarter, 26%, of the female respondents stated that their perfect working environment would be made up of 'just female' employees with no male colleagues at all. The remaining respondents were impartial.
More than a third, 34%, of the female respondents who stated that they would prefer to work in an environment made up of 'mostly men' said it was because they believed it would 'reduce the bitchy environment' created when working in an environment with mostly female staff.
Much like the male respondents, 52% of the female respondents who stated that they would like to be the 'only female' in a male office, said it was for the 'romantic opportunities' that could occur in that working environment.
Georgina Read, co-MD of Reabur, said: "This was an interesting study to conduct and I am surprised at the results. It is clear from the results that both sexes believe that men make the best work colleagues; apparently, because of the hostile or bitchy work environment women can create.
"Every member of staff is responsible for contributing to the working environment; both male and female employees can help to create a positive and friendly atmosphere. I would suggest teams getting together outside of work once a month, or every six weeks, to engage in team building activities, which will help build strong positive working relationships thereby creating a happy and motivated work force. Where relationships have broken down, employers could benefit by exploring tools such as workplace mediation to nip conflict in the bud, before it impacts upon productivity."
As part of ongoing research into the working habits of Britons, an online HR consultancy conducted a study into the attitudes of British employees in a bid to discover how they felt about their working environment and who would be their ideal colleagues. Subsequently, 1,271 Britons in employment were polled.
